Summer blooms simplify warm-season grass identification
URBANA, Ill. – Most people can identify a few different trees by their leaves or flowers in bloom, but grasses are a different story. Grasses provided food and shelter for wildlife and are key to a healthy ecosystem.
Learn to identify the wide variety of Illinois warm-season grasses in a...
Bridge the digital divide: Strategies to adopt, deploy broadband in your community
URBANA, Ill. – Broadband technology enables residents to conduct business, work from home, attend school, drive innovation, and access remote healthcare services, but some rural and underserved urban Illinois communities with insufficient infrastructure or limited provider choices still find it...
Aphid pests on the move in backyard gardens, agricultural fields
URBANA, Ill. – Ever spy small, yellow dots on the back of plant leaves during the summer months? Those tiny pear-shaped specks are aphids.
Aphids are a common insect pest in the home landscape and for houseplants. There are many species of aphids in Illinois and they feed on a large...
Green infrastructure solutions aim to protect water supply
URBANA, Ill. – A highway of subterranean pipes channel fresh water to and sewage away from Illinois’ homes, businesses, schools and parks. Pipes also carry runoff from rainstorms and snowmelt. This runoff includes pollutants swept away from parking lots, construction sites,...
Repair, renovate, restore: How communities support growth with TIF funding
URBANA, Ill. – Tax Increment Funding (TIF) provides a way for municipalities to spur economic growth and make infrastructure improvements in qualifying economically stagnant or physically declining areas, designated as TIF districts.
TIF districts reallocate property tax funds while...